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Orange County, NY - A new lawsuit challenges the validity of three actions Orange County took in February to settle litigation with Kiryas Joel over the village’s proposed water pipeline and the county’s sewage treatment plant in Harriman.

Attorneys for the Town and Village of Woodbury and Village of Harriman argue in court papers filed last week that the county skipped important environmental steps, shut out public scrutiny and broke its commitment to consult with municipal leaders before taking any major action involving the Harriman plant.

At the center of their case is a contract — approved by County Executive Ed Diana and signed by two administration officials on Feb. 19 — that will force property owners in the county’s Monroe-area sewer district to pay for more sewage treatment once their system’s capacity reaches 85 percent.

Diana’s promise enabled him to settle two lawsuits in which sewage treatment was the central issue, including his 2009 suit against Kiryas Joel over its proposal to tap the Catskill Aqueduct. Both court cases were dropped around the time the contract was signed.

Woodbury and Harriman officials contend that Diana had no right to commit to more sewer projects without getting input from leaders of the eight towns and villages that pay for the Harriman plant — as required by a 1995 contract — or doing an environmental review to analyze the potential impact of further plant expansions.

David Gordon, one of two New Paltz attorneys who brought the case, said Thursday that they will soon file a second lawsuit seeking to reopen the pipeline litigation. He argues that the county’s initial concerns about the growth of Kiryas Joel and its impact on sewage treatment are still valid, despite the settlement.

Read more in Times Herald-Record 

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